UPDATED REVIEW: Jewelmint.com

The holiday weekend passed by too quickly!  I actually didn't get any swatching done, because I didn't want to take of my Thankgiving mani.  It's just so pretty!  I keep looking at my fingers, lol.

Instead, I'm back with an updated Jewelmint review/haul.  If you remember from my last review on Jewelmint, I didn't have such a good first experience!  I had some problems, and it was really hard reaching their customer service!  But, I decided I'd give them a second chance.  They had this pretty good deal on Halloween called the BewitchMint Mystery Bag.  It came with 2 random Jewelmint pieces and you also had a chance to get a number of other prizes, including the Golden Goose Bracelet (which I totally want!!) and other things.  It was $29.99 (price of 1 piece) and I used a code to get 25% off.  I ended up with 2 bracelets that I probably would not have ordered on my own (but I really like them now!) and a $10 off code (which I have now used...lol).  The bracelets I got in my Bewitchmint bag are the Silver Zip Bracelet and the Gatsby Bracelet.  I used the $10 off code to get the Silver Swan Bracelet, which is the Golden Goose Bracelet but in silver.  Love all the pieces I have!

But I did have a little problem again...This time it was quickly and easily fixed.  One of my bracelets didn't come in a box, so I emailed customer service.  I think this is a much easier/faster way at reaching them, instead of trying to get a hold of someone on the phone.  I got a quick reply and they sent me a new box.  So yeah, Jewelmint has gained me back as a customer!  And now, on to the pretties!

First up, the Silver Zip Bracelet:

I was a little hesitant about getting a bracelet from Jewelmint, because I have pretty small wrists.  It's hard to find bracelets that will fit, because most will slide off if my arm is just hanging at my side.  I can't wear any bangles from Forever 21 and have to buy the XS/S ones from H&M.  Usually I buy stretchy bracelets, because those fit pretty well.  But this Silver Zip Bracelet fits great!  This bracelet is great to add to simple casual outfits to jazz it up a bit.  I wish I took a picture of me wearing each of the bracelets, so I could show the fit.  Maybe I will, and then I'll update this post. :)

Next up is the Gatsby Bracelet:

So sparkly!  The Gatsby Bracelet also fits great, and I think this would be great to dress up outfits!  

I don't have pictures of the Silver Swan bracelet yet, but when I do take them, I'll be sure to post them up along with pictures of the Wonderland Earrings!  Yep!  I got them.  Decided to cave in and get them on Cyber Monday when Jewelmint had a coupon code for $10 off each piece you buy (no limit!).  Best deal I've seen lately!  (Their Black Friday deals were kinda crappy...)

Anyway, another reason I wanted to do this post and get it out today was because Jewelmint is doing another mystery bag thing.  This time they're calling it the OrnaMint Mystery Bag (for the holidays y'know).  You'll get 2 pieces for sure and it's the same price at $29.99.  Unfortunately, you can't use any codes this time.  They got smart about that, I guess, lol.  If you're interested, you can find it here.  It's going on until tomorrow, Nov. 30 at 11:59 PM PST or until they sell out.  They said they have 10,000 bags and it hasn't sold out yet, so you still have a chance to get one.  They ask for a ring size this time, so I'm guessing you'll probably get at least one ring.  [On a side note, if you haven't signed up for Jewelmint yet, please think about using my personal link to sign up.  (It'll give me a credit to use on the site.) Thanks! :)]  Let me know if you buy an OrnaMint bag~

Anyone else do any Cyber Monday shopping?  I know there were a lot of great deals out there on the interwebs.  I didn't take advantage of any other sales though.  Kinda wish I had, but I'm trying to save moneysss.  So I limited myself on the spending this weekend.  Not something that's easy to do around the holiday season~!  But anyway, until next time~ because I should be studying right now, for the test I'm having later today, hehe...

FYI: Disinfecting Your Makeup

Happy Black Friday!  Did anyone brave the crowds and pick up some deals?

I didn't go out, since there wasn't anything that really interested me.  Anddd, I should be saving money!  But I did recently buy a palette (that I will do another post on soon) from Marshalls.  I hesitated a little since it was open, but it didn't look like it had been touched.  Plus, it was a really great deal, compared to the original price!  Besides, all the eyeshadows were in order, no cracks or missing pieces or dips in the product, etc.  But I thought I'd be safe and disinfect them.  Just in case, since it's better safe than sorry.

I remember reading somewhere that you could take a tissue with alcohol on it and wipe the top layer of your powder products.  But, I wasn't exactly sure and didn't want to ruin the product before I had a chance to use it, so I Googled it.  Found my answer and thought I'd share!






Basically, you spray your products with 91% isopropyl alcohol (rubbing alcohol) and let it dry. No damage done and you've got clean products! If you can't find the 91%, I read that you can also use 70%, which is more widely available and what most people have in their medicine cabinets/bathrooms. From what I read, the percentage is just how fast the alcohol will dry; higher percentage dries faster.  Hope this helps~

SWATCH+REVIEW: Chanel Peridot

Happy Thanksgiving!  Hope everyone who's celebrating is having a wonderful holiday!  Today, I'm sharing my Thanksgiving mani which is Chanel Peridot.

I got this for my birthday this year, from one of my closest friends.  I had wanted this polish for several reasons: one, Peridot is my birthstone, and two, it's so pretty!  But I couldn't justify the $25 price tag...and I was so surprised to get it for my birthday!  I have such amazing friends! :)

This polish is a gorgeous golden green color, changing depending on the angle.  The formula was great to work with and it applied beautifully.  Love love love it!!

Gorgeous isn't it? ♥

I'm so thankful for my family and amazing friends; so grateful for the roof over my head, the food on the table, and all that I was blessed with.  Again, Happy Thanksgiving!  I'm off to my Thanksgiving feast soon~  Hope everyone stays warm and safe, if you're planning on Black Friday shopping!

BIRCHBOX: November 2011

Hello~! I feel like I haven't blogged in a long while...I've been pretty busy with school.  It seems like all the tests and projects are piled on top of each other to get done before the Thanksgiving break.  I'm done with major exams for now, and I just turned in 2 projects today.  But I've still got 2 projects to work on that's due after Thanksgiving, and a quiz to study for too.  Busy, busy, busy!  I'm excited for winter break to come already!

Anyway, I got my Birchbox last week.  It was pretty weighty, so I was expecting great things!  There were quite a few goodies in this box, and I'm happy with what I got:

l-r, front to back: LaROCCA Skincare Body Polish, Zoya Nail Polish, Chuao Chocolatier Chocolate, 

Klorane Eye Makeup Remover, Bauble Bar Bracelet & Oscar Blandi Hair Mist

More pictures and info under the cut~

Wishlist Wednesdays (03)

Winter is coming~!  It rained quite a bit this past weekend, and the weather has gotten quite cooler.  I'm totally loving it!  I can break out my scarves and boots now. :D  I went with a couple friends to visit a new museum on Sunday, even though it was raining.  The museum had a really cool exhibit called Warriors, Tombs, and Temples which is an exhibit on China.  There were several life-size terracotta warriors on display, which were really amazing to look at.  Glad I got to go, cuz I'm working on crossing things off my day zero project list! ^^  But that was the end of my fun for the weekend...on Monday, I got my wisdom teeth taken out.  Blechhh~ so I've been home, in a bit of pain, trying to rest and not being able to eat anything except soup and ice cream and stuff like that.

Yeah, so haven't been in the mood to swatch or anything...Mostly I've been on Pinterest a lot!  I have become quite obessesed with Pinterest!  If you don't know what Pinterest is, it's kind of like tumblr except better because you can organize it!  You have boards that you pin stuff to, and you can repin from other boards and like pins.  That's not the best description, but you can find out more on the site.  I currently have several boards and tons of pins; my faves are DIY boards and I've gotten a lot of DIY ideas from them...follow me to see some of them~ :)

OKAY, enough rambling!  Onto Wishlist Wednesday!

The wishlist will probably be growing more and more, with Christmas only a month and a half away.  Today's additions are a mix of fashion and makeup!  Holiday collections are coming out now, so my first item is this palette from Physicians Formula's holiday collection:

photo: musings of a muse

I love the packaging!  It's so pretty!  And I'm always happy to get a new nude palette. :)  There are 3 other palettes coming out with this one, including a Smoky one.  They all have their own unique packaging and are all cute!  To learn more about these, you can check out Musings of a Muse.

Next are the Wonderland Earrings from Jewelmint:

photo: jewelmint blog

These were in my showroom last month, and I really liked them but didn't get them.  I decided to pass on them because the picture of the model wearing them didn't wow me.  But HollyAnnAeree recently did a video with these, and I really liked it on her, so now I'm contemplating getting them again, haha.  BTW, I decided to give Jewelmint a second chance, and got much better service the second time around!  I will be doing an updated review soon~

Lastly, I have been wanting one of the Sigma Make Me Up brush sets for the longest!

photo: sigma beauty

I'm just not sure which color I want!  I want either this one or the purple one, I think.  Oh, and they're also coming out with a Bunny collection, which is pretty much like this set...except vegan!  And different colors, of course.  They're also coming out with similar sets based on cities.  There will be 4: New York, London, Paris, and Tokyo.  Hey, what happened to LA? lol Anyway, I can't wait for those either...Sigma's coming out with some great stuff and I'm pretty excited to see the rest of it!  The only thing I'm bummed about is that they raised their prices on this brush set.  The Make Me Up collection used to be $99...now they're $109, and Sigma doesn't even have free shipping!  Guess I'll wait until IMATS to pick up this set, and hope they're on sale there.

Other things I'm currently wanting:
- MAC mineralize eye shadow in Winterized
- MAC paint pot in Morning Frost
- Coastal Scents Go Palette in London and Beijing

What's on your wishlists?